Wire or rod (hereinafter termed "wire" only) is formed at high speed in a rolling or drawing mill and is delivered in straight condition to a coiler that forms it into a succession of large-diameter turns that it deposits on a surface, normally a conveyor of some type. Thence the coiled wire is moved through subsequent treatment steps such as heat treatment, descaling, pickling, or simply cooling. It is critical that the wire be deposited in uniformly shaped and spaced coils so that the subsequent treatment stage is effective.
The typical coiling system comprises a guide tube twisted in three dimensions and having an upstream end opening axially in line with an axis about which the tube is rotated and a downstream end which opens at a location radially offset from the axis and directed generally tangentially. The straight wire is fed into the upstream end of the guide tube as it is rotated about its axis so that as the wire passes through the tube it is bent into an arcuate shape and will fall in a coil when leaving the downstream end of the tube.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,312,065 issued May 17, 1994 to Shore et al such a device is shown that basically comprises a rotor head or body carrying the spiral guide tube and that is secured via a flange to a basic support that is rotated about the axis and to whose center the incoming wire is fed. The tube extends freely upstream along the axis from the rotor body to a position with its upstream end aligned axially with the outlet of the infeed tube.
Since such a system is subject to considerable wear, as a steel wire is being pulled through the guide tube and simultaneously deformed, it is necessary to periodically service and/or replace the head structure. This is an onerous job entailing considerable down time while the rotor body is disconnected, and the way the guide tube is mounted leaves it open to damage as the rotor body is moved.